Zach is an eighteen year old senior who lives in a dysfunctional home. His mom is a manic depressant who hits him for no reason. A father that is an alcoholic who never spends time with him and a brother that beats on him when ever he sees him. Zack wakes up one morning in rehab. He can not remember how he got there and he can not remember his past. Zack does not want to remember because to remember is to feel and to feel hurts.
When Zack wakes up his roommate is a fifty –three year old man named Rafael. Zack and Rafael become real good friends. Rafael tries to help Zack face is monster. Rafael has a theory, if he could help Zack remember it would help Zack face his monsters and in turn would help him face his monsters. Zack does not believe that he will ever be happy. Zack had a theory also. His theory was that everyone was born with a blank heart and God writes what you are on your heart. On Zack’s heart God wrote sad. He feels it very hard to feel alive.
Benjamin Alire Sanenz had my attention from beginning to end. I even cried and felt joy at different parts of the novel. Saenz takes us in the past and present of Zack’ life, dealing with being addicted to alcoholic and cocaine. This novel lets you into the mind of an addict and how Zack is coping to try and recover from his addiction.